The Chazen Museum of Art
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University of Wisconsin-Madison CampusCHAZEN WEBSITE

The Chazen Museum of Art is pleased to present Vision and Continuity, showcasing the work of Alexander Archipenko (1887–1964), one of the twentieth century’s most innovative sculptors.

Organized by the Ukrainian Museum in New York with the cooperation of The Archipenko Foundation, this exhibition will feature about sixty sculptures in bronze, terra cotta, and aluminum as well as “sculpto-paintings,” constructions that dissolve the boundaries between two-dimensional and three-dimensional space by capitalizing on the interaction between form, color, and space.

Archipenko, born in Ukraine, contributed significantly to modern sculpture by exploring convex/concave forms, volume/space transference, mixed media constructions as well as by reintroducing color. He studied painting and sculpture in his native Kiev between 1902 and 1905. In 1908, after studying in Moscow, he moved to Paris where he was an active part of the avant-garde circles and progressive Cubist artists. Archipenko exhibited with Fernand Le'ger, Georges Braque, the Duchamp brothers, and Pablo Picasso, among others, at the seminal Salons des Inde'pendants and in 1912 he participated at the influential Cubist Section d’Or exhibition. While living in France, the artist created several groundbreaking sculptures, including Dance, c. 1912, Boxers, 1914, Walking, c. 1915–18, and Geometric Figure Seated, 1920, that will be included in this exhibition.

In 1923, Archipenko moved permanently to America, where he taught at art schools and universities throughout the country. In 1937 he joined the faculty of the New Bauhaus in Chicago. During his forty-year career in the United States, Archipenko continued to invent and experiment, staying true to his revolutionary ideas. In the 1930s, he created one of his best known works, Torso in Space, 1935, and in the 1940s he experimented with illuminated Plexiglas. His last years were among his most productive and inventive, as he reintroduced his sculpto-paintings in such seminal pieces as Cleopatra, 1957, and reestablished a dialogue with Cubism in his last work, King Solomon, 1963.

This exhibition will facilitate a new appreciation of Archipenko’s inventive contributions to modern art. The Chazen Museum of Art is the only Midwest venue for Vision and Continuity.

Reception
A free public reception will be held on Friday, September 15 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Educational Programs
Curator Dr. Jaroslaw Leshko, professor emeritus of art at Smith College, will give a lecture on the exhibition at 5:30 p.m. September 15 in room L140. Co-sponsored by the UW-Madison Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia.

Barbara C. Buenger, professor of art history, UW-Madison, will give the lecture "A Short History of Europe and Cubism" at 5:30 p.m. November 2 in room L140.